Fire Emblem: Rebirth
by Earthwyrm
Summary: Elysia and Uspal have maintained a steady truce for centuries, but after an unprovoked attack on Elysian soil by Uspalian pirates, this peace looks as if it won't last. Now its up to Alani and Phoenix, two young women, to somehow end the largest war in the history of Luris. Taking control of Elysia's special forces and swallowing what fear they may have, they march off.
1. Chapter 1- Libera and Adoni-Zedek

**Fire Emblem: Rebirth**

 **Chapter 1: Libera and Adoni-Zedek**

Several eons ago, back to the beginning of time, the goddess Libera ruled over the world of Luris. In Libera's rule, Luris was a chaotic yet beautiful world. More than anything, the goddess valued freedom and left the world to its own devices. However, she realized that while the world she oversaw had freedom, none of its creatures had a free will. So, from the dust of the land and sky, she formed a new beast and instilled this free will into it. She named this beast "man", and the first man's name was Adoni-Zedek. To this first man she bestowed part of her power, as he was her magnum opus. With this power he founded the first nation of the world, Uspal.

Now, in man's early years he created chaos unlike anything Luris had handled before. He hunted its beasts, ate of its fruits, and ravaged its lands as he travelled. This only grew more problematic as man procreated and multiplied. Libera, however, was pleased. She viewed this as the natural progression of the world, and had no desire to impose on the freedom of man. She did nothing to direct man away from the destruction of Luris.

Eventually, Adoni-Zedek opened his eyes to the destruction his kind had wrought on their home. His home. So, he began ushering man in a new direction- one of order and law. On the trunk of a great tree with golden leaves, the place Libera was said to have first created the world, he etched what would become the first law of man. While there, he prayed to Libera to help him guide man and seek a balance between Law and Freedom. Upon hearing Adoni's prayer, Libera flew into a rage, infuriated that her greatest creation would ask her to betray what she valued most. She appeared to Adoni in the form of a wolf, and attacked the tree in an attempt to remove the laws he had written there. Adoni was shocked and enraged himself, incapable of understanding how someone could allow their creation to rot in chaos and disorder. He declared war on Libera.

Mankind became split between the two divinities. Several stayed with Adoni-Zedek, believing his ideals of law and order to be the best path for mankind, even if they were rigid and strict. Another sect split away from Adoni and the nation of Uspal, believing in the ideologies of Libera- that man should be free with no one to rule over him. These rebels formed the nation of Elysia.

The war between Adoni-Zedek and Libera lasted many decades. In this time, Libera finally came to terms with the destructive power of man and saw the pain and misery man could inflict on the world. So, she concocted a plan to end the war forever. Using yet another part of her power, she created an emblem of the Crescent Moon and bestowed it on the most powerful warrior in Elysia, and commanded him to take the emblem to Uspal, to the palace where Adoni-Zedek ruled. She told him that he was to take her with him, and that all would be clear once they reached their destination.

The warrior of Elysia gathered three of his most trusted friends, and together with Libera, took the war to Adoni-Zedek's front door. The battle was hard fought, and there were several casualties, but the Elysian forces were able to seize Adoni's throne. With a blade to Adoni's neck, Libera marched him and the warriors to a grand stone altar originally built in her honor. There she commanded the warrior to hold the emblem high, and as he did it shone like the moon and split into five pieces- the sword Earthwyrm, the bow Lobera, the lance Amalger, the axe Helmfried, and the magic tome Eblavack. Taking the tome, Libera ordered the other four to choose a weapon. After the choices were made, she commanded each of them to strike Adoni-Zedek with their weapon. One by one, the heroes of Elysia attacked the Bringer of Law. As his body and spirit finally yeiled to the assault, Libera trapped his soul and the power she had granted him in the grand altar where he lay. A seal of flames was placed to mark the spot and prevent him from ever breaking free and defying her again. This seal became known as the Fire Emblem.

Having exhausted most of what remained of her power, Libera found herself trapped on the mortal plane. Not wishing to ever again interfere with the proceedings of man, she took the form of a wolf once more and fled, ashamed of the destruction she had brought to her world. Elysia took up the emblem of the Crescent Moon as its national crest in remembrance of Libera and what she blessed them with. Uspal took up the symbol of the scales as its crest, in a solemn remembrance of Adoni-Zedek's law and guidance.

Uspal still follows the original Laws of Man that Adoni-Zedek had blessed them with all those years ago. It is a prosperous northern land, bountiful in natural resources and fertile soil. Today, Uspal is ruled by King Warren, a man famous for his lack of leniency towards those who would break his laws. His society, while somewhat strict, is well structured and organized

Elysia today still values what Libera held sacred, freedom. However, they realized over the years that unchecked liberty leads to chaos and anarchy. While lenient, law and structure does exist and has become more prominent in the recent years under King Raginmund. While Elysia is a beautiful land, it has been suffering. It has found itself overpopulated and struggling with limited natural resources. Worse yet, tensions have been high with Uspal the past 20 years, leading to a cold war.

At this point, anything could spark a war.


	2. Chapter 2- My Name is Alani

**Chapter 2: My Name is Alani**

In southern Elysia one a rocky bluff overlooking the sea, there sat a young girl of about twenty. She wore simple hunting clothes: a green hooded tunic trimmed a pale green, tan pants, and brown boots. Her hair was a chestnut brown, only slightly darker than her skin, and dyed a dark green at the tips. It was tied back in a ponytail, while her bangs covered half her face. One of her hazel eyes was visible, with the black line and dots signifying her age, 22, rested on her cheek. Her eyes darted back and forth, watching the horizon for any suspicious activity. The sun was still rising as she went to wake her compatriots.

Nestled soundly asleep in their tents were the two men the girl was looking for. She laughed as she looked at the two, twisted in their sheets and drooling over one another. She wondered what she had done to earn herself such goofy retainers, and went to work waking the two up. Standing at the entrance to the tent, she straightened up and shouted, "DRAKE. ALEXIAN. WAKE UP!" With a jolt and a small shout of fear from Drake the two bolted out from under their blankets. From the corner of the tent, a small silver dragon with a face similar to a bat yawned and stretched.

The first to be fully alert and dressed was Drake. Drake was noticeably shorter than Alani by about four inches. He frantically adjusted his red goggles over his messy copper hair as he finished putting his black boots on. His tunic was traditional myrmidon garb, colored in dark green with red striped sides. His pants followed a similar color scheme. With a small flick of his hand, the dragon that previously been napping in the corner was on his shoulder.

As the dragon hopped on Drake's shoulder, Alexian finished preparing himself. He ran his large hands through his spiked black hair and finished putting on his silver armor around his shoulders and chest. The rest of his body was simply covered in a grey tunic and pants with silver colored boots, to keep his movement free. He stood noticeably taller than both Drake and Alani, and three distinct scars were visible over his left eye as the sun shone on his face from the entrance of the tent.

"Sorry to give you all such a rude awakening," Alani chuckled, "But it's time to get moving out. We want to try and get back to the capital by dinner after all." "Torgils? We're trying to get back in one day? According to the map we're only at Puehl Village, it's another two days march without horses. Forgive me for speaking out of place, milady, but I don't think we'll make it today." Alexian responded. "Going traditional trade routes," Alani said, "Then yes, that's a two day march. But, Drake and Wilderwind are familiar with this area," she motioned to Drake and the dragon on his shoulder, "And if he remembers as well as I think he does than I'm sure he remembers that small forest pass between Puehl and Torgils."

Drake reached into a bag in the back of the tent and pulled out a map. The dragon, Wilderwind, held it up as Drake read. "Yep, looks about right to me. Most merchants avoid that area because of the overgrowth and high population of Piccadarries, but with an anima," he motioned to Wilderwind, "We should have no issue fending them off. We should really stop and arm ourselves at Puehl first, I need a blade in my hand already. Next time we're sent on a simple message delivery mission, I want to have my swords with me." "I know Drake, I would've liked to have my bow and I know Alexian wanted his axe, but father was adamant that we make this trip unarmed so we would look like commoners to any Uspalian spies. That's why Alexian had to hide his face and you had to hide Wilderwind after all. We were too conspicuous otherwise.

"Anyway," Alani continued, "We really should be on our way. I see some ships moving into Puehl's port over there and I'd like to get through the village before there's a huge influx of people. Wilderwind?" "Yep!" the small dragon perked up, "What can I do for ya?" "I need you to scout ahead and map out some of our trail while we stock up on armaments." "Can do!" With a flap of his wings, Wilderwind took flight and headed out of the tent "Well?" Alani asked, "Should we head out?" "Certainly milady!" Drake responded, resulting in a dirty look from Alani. "Don't call me that! I hate those formal titles, I'm just Alani, ok?" "Sure thing, 'Just Alani'" Drake chuckled to himself. Alexian softly swatted him on the back of the head. "You're insufferable, you know that?"

The three began their march into Puehl Village, one of Elysia's smallest port towns, all the while watching the ships sailing in off the horizon. "Strange," Drake stated after a few minutes of walking in relative silence, "I don't recognize those sails. They certainly aren't Petrean and they don't match any Elysian banners, no crescent moon insignia." "Probably just merchants from the Bay Kingdoms," Alani replied, "According to the books I read, there's an upward of 20 kingdoms in that area, and they're almost always changing power. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a new revolt and we just haven't gotten word of it yet. Can't really tell from here, the ships are too far off." Alexian merely stared stoically at the ships, eyes narrowing slightly. After another half hour of walking, he spoke up.

"Milday-" "Alani" "-Alani those appear to be pirate vessels. I'd recognize that bow carving anywhere." Alexian said, turning to the others. "Ack!" Drake exclaimed, "If they're pirates, and they're headed straight for Puehl, then the village is in a ton of trouble! We need to step in, and now!" Before the others could say anything, Drake was off in a mad dash for the village. "DRAKE!" Alani shouted after as she began running for him, "YOU'RE UNARMED YOU DAMN FOOL!" Alexian sighed and dashed after his liege and companion.

The three were late when they finally reached the village. The pirates had already landed and had begun wreaking havoc, tipping over stalls, robbing citizens, and putting several structures to the torch. Drake stopped on the edge of town before the pirates saw him, giving Alani and Alexian time to catch up. "So?" he asked, "What's the plan? We're unarmed and one of our country's villages are under attack. I vote we go forth to save the day, however possible." "If we knew where a blacksmith was," Alani replied, "Then we'd be in better shape. I could theoretically dash in and grab what we need. I can't make one out from here!" "…Found it."

Alani and Drake immediately turned to Alexian. "What? How?" Alani asked, confused. "Right there. I was looking while you all were panicking." Alexian pointed to a small shop on the edge of town, not far from their current location overlooking the village. "We could probably reach it without the pirates noticing us." "I've got an idea too!" Drake hopped up excitedly, "Look at how those pirates are operating! They seem to be following orders from that one guy at the edge of the docks there! Thanks to the town's layout, we could probably take him out, sow some chaos, and escape to go get help from Torgils. It's a straight shot along the docks from here to the road we plan to take anyway." Alani grinned. "You two are smarter than you lead on sometimes. Here's the plan, I'll get arms from the blacksmith, and as soon as I'm back we'll get to work taking these guys out. Once we take out the captain there, we make a break for it and get help. We have a plan."

Alani immediately vaulted over the bush they had been hiding behind and made a dash for the blacksmith, Alexian and Drake close behind. She quickly dashed inside while the duo stood guard outside.

"Excuse me? Is there anyone here?" And older, balding man with jet black hair and a grimy green apron hopped up from behind the counter of the small store, wielding a red hot poker. "Back off you filthy heathen! I'll send you to Libera I will! You ain't touchin' crap!" Alani quickly ducked as he took a stab at her. "Sir please! I just need some weapons to help protect the town!" "How do I know you ain't just a filthy theivin' pirate?" Alani sighed and stood up. She lifted the sleeve of her tunic and showed the man the tattoo on her forearm. It was simple, the design of a crescent moon with two quarter circle shapes within done in black ink, dark enough to stand out against her tan skin. "My name is Alani Onyota'aka, I hope this proof here will suffice?" She rolled her sleeve back down as the man turned pale. "My deepest apologies milady, I-" "Alani" "What?" "My name is Alani. You need only address me as that." "My humblest apologies Miss Alani. I will do my best to help you however possible."

At that moment, a thud was heard from outside. Drake poked his head in the door. "If we could get that sword and axe soon that'd be great. Alexian says he's tired of taking these guys out with his hands. Thanks, you're fantastic!" The blacksmith turned to Alani as Drake shut the door. Another thud was heard from outside as the blacksmith spoke. "So you need a sword, and axe, and a bow I presume? You plant to fight too, correct?" "Certainly, I can't leave those two to all the fun after all. Another thud followed by a shout of "Damn Alexian, was that really necessary?" was heard from outside. "I seriously cannot leave them to all the fun." Alani repeated. "Well I happen to have what you need right here. Here, take it and drive those bloody pirates out of here!" Alani took the weapons from the man and thanked him. "I promise I'll get you the bronze needed for this soon, sir!" With that, she ran out and handed her retainers their axes and sword.

"Iron, nice! Better than that bronze practice crap we normally use! Let's get to work!" Drake exclaimed, swinging the sword around in his hand. Alexian merely nodded in thanks. Alani tried not to notice the three beaten bodies by the door as she stung her bow. "Keep me covered," she stated, "I need to have some distance between me and the enemy to shoot, I haven't mastered point-blank yet." With that, the fight began.

Gauging the enemy, Alani noted about six pirates of real threat, including the captain. She made it her goal to ensure that these few were taken down. One that had been pillaging fruit carts along the docks took note of the bodies by the blacksmith's door, and dashed at the three in a rage while swinging his axe. He made a move at Drake, who deftly parried his attack and slashed right back with his own blade. "You should've know better, swords and much more elegant and agile than axes. You're going to have a hard time hitting me!" he said, proudly. Alexian quickly moved in for a follow up, swinging his iron axe down into the enemy's back. "That's the teamwork I like to see!" Alani said with a smile as she shot an arrow into another pirate.

By this point, the five remaining threats had taken notice of the three and had begun making moves to take them down. The captain appeared to take notice of the direction they were heading, and moved to block the path leaving town. Alexian suddenly shouted "MAGE!" Alani looked up just in time to take a fireball to the chest. She quickly hopped back to her feet and brushed herself off, finally catching a glimpse of the red robed pirate holding a red tome standing in front of her. He appeared to be muttering something, and before she noticed what he was saying, another fireball was launched in her direction. With quick thinking, Drake jumped in front of the attack, shouting "I won't let you harm them!" and took the attack head on. Alani panicked for a second, before Drake turned to her with a smile. "I'm pretty good at taking magical hits, remember? Take the shot!" Before the mage could fire off another round at Drake, Alani strung her bow and launched an arrow into the enemy's chest. He flopped over, dead.

Meanwhile Alexian found himself surrounded on both sides by two more pirates. They were landing decent hits, but he was able to shake most of them off. He swung and missed one as another axed collided with his shoulder plate. Taking quick note of the enemy's stance when he swung the first time, Alexian stuck again, this time aiming for the pirate's leg, shouting "I don't miss twice!" He took the pirate down, and quickly rolled to the side to avoid an attack from behind. Drake began moving towards the captain while Alani struck the pirate assaulting Alexian in the back. Taking the momentary distraction provided by Alani to his advantage, Alexian butted the enemy in the chest with the bottom of his axe's handle to knock him over. With another swing, the pirate was done for. All that remained was the captain.

Drake was the first to confront the captain, who laughed upon getting a clear view of the swordsman. He stood there, dressed in fine red robes, his face rough from the years being beaten by the salty sea spray. He brandished a lance proudly. "Well, look at this! A challenger for ol' captain Rosh. I'm hopin' yer not as weak as you look, child, otherwise this won't be much fun." Drake rushed in, sword ready, only to be quickly swatted away by Rosh's lance. Drake stood once again to deliver another attack, only to receive a sharp blow to his side from the lance once more. 'Damn,' he thought to himself, 'I need to be careful, lances have a hell of a range when compared to my sword. I don't think I can land a solid hit.' As he stood once more to attack again, he heard a whistling sound from behind him as he watched an arrow barely graze Rosh. Seeing his opportunity, Drake lunged forward, shouting "Spotlight's on me!" His attack connected with Rosh's side, obviously dealing a good bit of damage. However, Rosh still stood, and once again jabbed at Drake with his lance, only barely missing.

Alani shouted behind her as she shot off another arrow, "Alexian! We need you NOW!" Alexian quickly made a move over to Rosh's position, but wasn't quite able to make it before Drake took another lance to the side. Drake was noticeably hurt and exhausted by this point, and Alexian knew this next move was all or nothing. He swung with his axe and brought it down on the captain's lance with a cry of "Get out of my way!" Alani quickly followed up from behind, shouting "I will make my people proud!" With an arrow directly to his chest and a broken lance, Rosh was finally taken down. Silence followed.

Suddenly, cheers erupted from the citizens that had been hiding from the pirates as the remainder of the crew took note of the situation. The remaining few quickly reconvened as villagers took up broken bottles and stones and began chasing them back to their ship. The crew made an attempt to escape, but not before a man chucked a flaming bottle of ale onto the deck of the ship. It sailed off into the horizon, alight in a glorious blaze and villagers cheered and congratulated the man who threw the bottle. When they turned to finally thank the three who led the charge, they were nowhere to be found.

Alani, Drake, and Alexian were much further along the trail leaving town before anyone had noticed they had left. They dashed to the point they were able to find Wilderwind, who had been leaving marks on trees for them. They stopped to rest once they had reconvened, Drake finally taking the opportunity to chug a vulnerality and heal his wounds. Sarcastically, Wilderwind asked "So, how was the little party down there? Looks like you all had fun." Drake shot him a dirty look.

"I'm not sure where those pirates even came from. I thought for sure the Elysian navy was patrolling this coast for that kind of activity. This area hasn't had a pirate problem in years! And, to top it all off, why attack Puehl of all places? They aren't even particularly notable in this area, not like Sickle Bay up the coast," Alani said, panting. "They were Uspalian." "Uh, what Alexian?" Drake asked, confused. "They were Uspalian. Their flags had a scale on them." "Seriously, nothing gets past you does it?" Wilderwind stated, surprised, "If you're right we things just got a hell of a lot harder for everyone." Alani stood up and immediately began running down the path once again. "Hey! Where are you going? Milady!" Drake attempted to stand, but fell over due to his wounds.

"I'm going to Torgils, someone has to let Raginmund know! War is about to start and we have to be ready for anything!

"And my name is Alani!"


	3. Chapter 3- Flickering Flames

**Chapter 3: Flickering Flames**

"…However, the effects the war had on the world of Luris were greater than any man had originally expected. Primordial energy left over from sealing of Adoni persisted, and as the years marched forward, gifted mages learned to manipulate this energy. At first, this was simply used as simple sorcery, manipulating winds and currents. But, one day, a mage was able to provide form to this energy and created the first Anima. Now, thanks to our modern research of spellcraft, we know that Animas are beings that spring forth from this energy only when drawn to intense emotion from a powerful mage… PRINCESS PHOENIX!"

The stout, purple haired woman who had been lecturing brought the staff she had been using to teach down on the desk of her student, nearly hitting her head. The brown haired youth jumped up, woken from the nap she had been taking. She quickly readjusted her robes and the crescent moon pin in her hair as her teacher walked over to a window on the far wall of the classroom.

"Princess Phoenix, I understand that this subject matter may come as a bore to you- especially given the fact that you've shown no aptitude for magic or the like- but these details are important." The woman brought a hand to her headband and touched the two red flowers woven into it. "You will find yourself on the battlefield someday in the future and you will need to know how to properly and quickly dispatch Animas."

"Selle."

"And your sister has made an Anima-bonded one of her retainers, you'll need to learn how to properly interact with him!"

"Selle!" Phoenix slammed one of her hands down on her desk in an attempt to get the stout woman's attention. Selle jumped a little and turned to face the princess. "Selle for the love of Libera calm yourself! You act as if father will have you head if you make one simple mistake!"

Selle gulped at this statement and fidgeted with her robes, tracing the red material with her finger. She couldn't bring herself to meet the princess's gaze, instead focusing on the gold trimming and the small white cape around her right shoulder. She was familiar with every aspect of her outfit, as it is the traditional garb of Elysian clerics, but suddenly it was the most interesting thing in the world to her. Phoenix snapped her fingers and Selle found her head immediately darting up. Damn, she hated how this girl had her conditioned. Satisfied with her control over the dynamic, Phoenix put herself back in her chair and propped her boots up on her desk.

"Selle, you know me! I don't care about mages and stuff, they aren't that special. At the end of the day, be they man or Anima, they're made out of stuff. You know the neat thing about stuff? That's right! All stuff can be smashed if you try hard enough. That's all you _really_ need to know. Plus, when I do eventually find myself out there on the battlefield, do you honestly believe I'm going to remember everything you teach me?"

"W-well-"

"I'll answer that for you. I won't," Phoenix stated bluntly, brushing one of her bangs out of her eyes, "I'll be acting on instinct, like I do when I'm training with my lance. I won't be remembering the standard fighting forms, and I sure as hell won't be remembering the fact that Animas are 'conjured by pure emotion' or whatever."

"And that is the kind of disrespectful, flippant attitude that will result in you getting cleaved in two," a deep voice boomed from the back of the room. The voice belonged to an imposing, older man garbed in full armor. He had the grizzled appearance of a seasoned war veteran, a fact made evident in the adornments on his breastplate. His grey hair stuck close to his head, giving away that he had just returned from training.

"Adolfo!" Selle sighed with relief, "Thank you for stopping by!"

"I can see you're having some trouble, the both of you." Adolfo strutted over to a world map hung on the wall opposite Selle. Phoenix visibly straightened up in her desk when he entered the room, dropping her feet to the floor. A slight look of concern crossed her face. "Phoenix, must I again remind you that your father helped design this curriculum for you for a reason? Do you wish to upset him?"

Phoenix's head drooped over. "No, Adolfo, I don't want to make father upset."

"Then I should expect behavior more becoming of the next queen." He turned and walked over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. Her golden robe shimmered beneath his hand. "Princess, I understand it is challenging to listen to topics that do not interest you, but you must understand that the day will come where you will find yourself fighting the Uspalian dogs. What will you do then?"

"I'll respond instinctively, is that _not_ how soldiers are trained to fight?" She raised her head, but instead of meeting Adolfo's gaze she shifted her glare to the round birthmark on Selle's cheek. Adolfo sighed, dismayed.

"You are partially correct. I do teach my men to trust their survival instincts in the heat of battle, however I teach the stances for a reason. Each stance and style was developed by the warriors of Elysia's grand history, girl! They each saw some level of success in some great clash, which is a sign to their use! Weave various styles and stances together and you become unstoppable! Instinct alone can only do so much. Instinct alone nearly cost you your eye." He motioned to the scar running through Phoenix's left eyebrow. "And that was merely a training exercise. Imagine if that had been someone who truly intended to kill you."

Selle tried to hide her grin. This wasn't the first time Adolfo had managed to save her lesson by speaking candidly with the princess. For some reason, he appeared to be the only person aside from the girl's father and sister who was able to speak to her in such a frank manner, and actually manage to get through to her. Phoenix may not show it on the outside, but Selle could tell Adolfo's words were forcing her to recognize her mistakes.

"Thank you, Adolfo," Selle finally said, "You've been a great help. Princess I hope you take his words to heart. I'm not here to be your enemy, and I certainly don't desire to teach you things you have no interest in, but everything I tell you is important. It's all so that one day you can make this country proud!" She took a deep breath before continuing, her heart racing a little faster than before, "And, so that you may find your mother again."

Phoenix could feel Adolfo's grip tighten on her shoulder, as if he expected her to jump up and strangle Selle then and there. He was smart to do so, she thought, because if he hadn't she would've done just that. Instead, she decided to calmly respond with "I have no mother."

This was not a completely true statement, and Phoenix knew that. She very much did have a mother, but in the eyes of most Elysians she might as well have died years ago. In her time, Queen Aerona was beloved by the nation and bore King Raginmund's only surviving blood heir, Phoenix. However, as the nation's issues with overpopulation increased and its natural resources decreased, the king became withdrawn. During his more reclusive years, there were murmurings throughout the kingdom that the queen was an adulteress. The citizens would claim every young man who entered the castle was one of her lovers. During the peak years many would go on to claim that Phoenix herself wasn't the true heir to the throne, claiming that she was the result of early infidelity. The princess, once beloved by the kingdom, become a source of distrust and, in some cases, scorn. The queen, in an attempt to escape these rumors, made a trip to a vacation home closer to the Elysian/Uspalian border, bringing Phoenix with her. Phoenix was merely 5 years old.

Phoenix remembered these trips fondly. She remembered her mother making special lunches just for her, even though there were servant available to them. They played games and told stories. She even remembered the nice man who came and visited them regularly, because he always gave her a sweet biscuit every time he visited. She also remembered how her mother told her not to mention him to her father, saying that it would only 'encourage those nasty rumors'. These trips became increasingly common for the both of them, and were some of Phoenix's happiest memories. Eventually, however, her mother vanished for one of these trips without her, and never returned. Scouts scoured the land searching for her. Months later, an Elysian spy in Uspal reported finding her with a man with a description matching that of the one Phoenix remembered visiting them in the vacation home.

Dredging up these horrible memories was something Phoenix would rather not have been caught on in this moment, especially when she felt a tear begin to roll down her cheek. After sitting in silence for several minutes, she spoke. "Adolfo, please release me. I believe this lesson is done for the day." Adolfo released his grip on her shoulder as she slowly rose and left the room for another part of the castle. Adolfo turned to Selle, a scowl across his face.

"Woman, are you trying to get yourself killed? Raginmund already has his eye on you after those pro-Uspalian statements you made several months back. Bringing up his prized daughter's past emotional trauma is far from a way to win his favor."

Selle walked over to her desk at the front of the room and leaned over it, breathing in short, sharp breaths. "I-I'm sorry Adolfo, I couldn't help it! That girl is such a nightmare sometimes, you know exactly how it is in here! She doesn't care about these lessons, all she cares about is her damn lance. She's made it clear how much she hates the Uspalians and how much she would love to wipe them all out at once, but without a proper target for all the aggression and hate in her heart she takes all of it out on me! I can only take so much more of this!"

Adolfo walked over, removed his glove, and slapped her across the face with it. "Dammit woman! You are an educator and a retainer to her royal highness, princess Phoenix of Elysia! Behave like a person of your station ought to behave! Your issue is that you allow to this girl to get under your skin, which results in you getting the juvenile urge to get back at her. Rise above, you are better than this. Now, come! I imagine the girl went to the training grounds to relieve some of this negative energy. I want you both to apologize to one another and hopefully we can get you both to begin acting like decent people." Selle nodded solemnly, hand covering a red welt forming on her cheek.

As the two began to leave the room, an explosion erupted from outside the castle with force enough to shake the room slightly. Adolfo quickly covered Selle as she screamed in panic. When the shaking stopped, Adolfo examined the room for damage. Aside from the world map falling on the floor, everything seemed ok. "Selle," Adolfo said, quietly.

"Yes?

"Get your staff. I've got a horrible feeling in my stomach and I think we'll need your healing."

Selle quickly grabbed the staff she had left on the front desk and followed Adolfo out of the room. They ran down to the main hall of the castle, a grand, arched room made from a white stone with an ornate red carpet with gold trimming running down its center, atop a white marble. There Adolfo managed to catch the attention of nearby panicked guards.

"Men!" Upon hearing Adolfo's voice the guards immediately stood at attention. "Who can give me a report on what the hell is happening?"

A shorter, younger guard stepped forward, or rather, was pushed forward. Adolfo thought the boy would collapse from the weight of his armor alone, he was rather small and his white fullplate looked as if it barely fit him with his helmet sitting loosely on his head. He managed to straighten up and put his lance at attention. "Sir!" he spoke with a voice more powerful than his appearance suggested, "There appears to have been an explosion in the market. We have 5 reported deaths thus far, and around 13 injured. Only one has been able to speak with us, and intel leads us to believe that this was an Uspalian attack, sir! What's worse is that it appears there were several more Uspalians ready to strike as soon as the explosives went off, as there are several more attacking citizens and guardsmen still in the market."

"Damn those dogs! How the hell did they manage to get themselves so far into the country, let alone an explosive! You! Boy!" Adolfo pointed a hand at the small guardsman. He jumped inside his armor. "Hand me your lance. I'm going to do what I can to help." The guard nervously passed his lance over to Adolfo. Selle reached out as if to take it instead, but he quickly slapped her hand out of the way.

"Adolfo, please. You'll be killed out there!" Selle said, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

"I must do what I can. I swore my fealty to Elysia and King Raginmund, I plan to abide by my knight's code until my dying breath. If it comes today, so be it." Adolfo began marching to the castle doors. Selle jogged after him with an outstretched arm.

"Adolfo, wait!" She put a hand on his shoulder guard. "I'm coming with you. I am a cleric after all, I can help keep you alive."

"I'm coming too." Everyone's heads turned to the voice from behind, belonging to a girl standing at the entrance of one of the connecting hallways. She was dressed in a royal's armor, the emblem of Elysia prominent on her chest plate in a bright gold, offset by the white. She wore a cape of brilliant gold pinned on each shoulder. In her hand was a lance crafted from Elysia's finest iron. Phoenix.

"Princess, are you mad?" Adolfo asked. "Those men out there are not the men you beat during practice. These are soldiers and terrorists, who truly will mean to kill you! If you think that scar on your head is bad, wait until they finish with you!"

"Silence!" Phoenix commanded, "I am a princess of Elysia! I have jurisdiction over my own life, thank you, and I choose to use it to help my people. I know you think me selfish, Adolfo, and I know that I can be a damn fool, but let me be foolish for the people of Elysia."

Adolfo paused for a moment. Phoenix could hear her heart pounding out of her chest. She had been disrespectful of authority plenty of times in the past, but never with regards to a situation like this, and especially not with Adolfo. She gulped, and could feel her face starting to flush. After what felt like an eternity, Adolfo finally spoke.

"Fine. Grab you lance and follow me to the market. Keep your wits about you princess, regardless of what you may believe, your sheltered life has not prepared you for what you might be about to bear witness to."

"I'm ready."

"Spoken just like your father. Selle, stick close to the princess. If she falls we're doomed. Don't concern yourself with me."

"But, Adolfo!" Selle tried to argue, but found herself unable to speak against Adolfo. He simply raised a hand and silenced her. She nodded in understanding, and the three ran out of the castle and to the market square.

The Elysian capitol of Torgils is a large city with a booming population. This could've easily worked to the detriment of the group, luckily the market square was only a block over from the castle's square. This area, typically used for local and foreign vendors to peddle their wares, is normally thriving with activity and people. Adolfo knew this, and was aware that this fact is what would make the results of this attack as horrible as they were. Upon arriving to what was once the market, the trio were immediately slammed with the stench of death and despair. They could easily see rubble lying about all over the square, ruined cobblestones from the street intermixed with colorful tarps and banners that once hung over carts. The center of the square appeared to be where the blast went off, as there was a small crater, charred black. Phoenix could make out screaming from all around her and saw people still attempting to flee the square or rescue loved ones trapped in the destruction, all the while being chased and assaulted by a group of ax-wielding assailants. Without a thought, Phoenix raised her lance and charged out after the nearest attacker, who was about to bring his ax down on a child attempting to free her mother. Before his ax could hit its target, he found a lance piercing his chest.

"Dastards! All of you! I'll kill you all!" Phoenix shouted, catching the attention of the remaining men.

"Phoenix! Be more careful!" Adolfo shouted as he ran to her side, Selle chasing after him. Taking position, he quickly surveyed the scene. "Phoenix, I have a plan. I need you to help free those people still trapped here under the rubble. Selle, you stay by her and help where she needs it, put that staff to proper work! I will hold this position and make sure these terrorists are brought to proper justice. When you are done, run. Run to the castle and get help from your father. Do not waste time arguing with me, no matter what happens you must get out of this alive." He gripped his lance. "Go!"

Phoenix immediately turned back to the little girl, who had begun crying profusely. "It's alright, it's alright! I'm going to help you however I can! Now, I need your help. Can you help me?" The girl nodded, wiping her eyes. Her mother appeared to be unconscious. "Good! Now, I'm going to lift this rock. When it's up, I want you to help my friend here wave her staff. It should wake your mommy back up, and when it does I want you two to run away from here, ok?" The girl nodded quietly. Behind her, Phoenix could hear Adolfo and another man shout. She realized she didn't have much time. "Selle, be ready."

With every bit of strength she had, Phoenix lifted the rubble off of the trapped woman. As soon as it was off, Selle and the girl waved her staff over the woman. She opened her eyes slowly. "Run!" Phoenix shouted, "Grab your daughter and get away from here, now!" The woman needed no more commands, as soon as the effects of Selle's healing magic fully hit her she jumped up and grabbed her daughter. However, before they were able to get far they were confronted by one of the axmen.

"Hello, what have we here? More Elysian scum? Well we know just what to do with you!" The man grinned.

Phoenix was quick with her reaction, she jumped over to the attacker and jabbed his ax with her lance, applying enough force to cause it to miss its target. The woman grabbed her daughter close and the two screamed. Phoenix swung her lance around and jabbed the man in the chest, shouting "We will not fall to the likes of you!" He fell over, dead.

As the woman fled with her daughter, Phoenix turned to see if Adolfo was still standing strong. He was engaged with a man on horseback wielding a sword. Adolfo was barely able to pull himself out of the way of the man's strikes, his heavy armor clearly weighing him down. Phoenix made it her resolve to help him as soon as she finished. But for now, two trapped Elysians remained. "Selle, let's move."

As the duo began moving to the next target, Phoenix heard the sound of hooves coming from behind her. She quickly spun around, lance at the ready.

"Hold! Lady Phoenix, please!" The cavalier responded with Phoenix's lace at his neck.

"Isambard? Why the hell are you here and not helping Adolfo? Ack, never mind! We need to free that man trapped over there, stand guard and keep the axmen at bay!" She began dashing over to the next pile of rubble.

"I'm sorry, Isambard," Selle said, trying to keep up with Phoenix, "But this situation is fairly dire. Stay alert!"

"Excuse you, miss, but remember that I am one of Elysia's elite cavaliers! I am Isambard the wonder! I can handle every situation!" Isambard's horse reared back as he spoke, a man in front of it swinging an ax. "Here, allow me to show you! My swordplay is peerless!" Isambard swung his sword down, barely missing his target. The assailant swung his ax once more, clanging it loudly against Isambard's armor. "Damn, how could I miss? However, thanks to my fantastic armor, I am nearly invulnerable!" That is, he thought to himself, I don't take too many more hits from him. "Once more!" Isambard swung again, hitting his target true.

"Isambard, pay closer attention to your liege!" Adolfo shouted between blows. He was still attempting to avoid the strikes of the cavalier. "Get your overinflated head out of your ass for one minute and focus on the battle!"

Isambard was confused for a second, and turned his head to Phoenix, who was clutching her side. Her hand was red, and one of the attackers was sprawled on the ground in front of her. Selle waved her staff over Phoenix's wound, but Isambard saw another attacker attempting to sneak up on them. He snapped the reins on his horse and equipped his lance, charging directly toward him. In one fluid motion, he drove his lance into the would-be assailant's side. While he dealt with the enemy, Phoenix managed to free another citizen. It appeared that everyone was finally free. All that remained was to save Adolfo.

Phoenix began her march over to Adolfo, until she suddenly found herself being pulled into the air from behind. "Well now, did I nab me someone important?" The large man laughed to himself. Phoenix was turned away from him, unable to see his face. She did notice, however, that he rode a large canine, likely the reason she didn't hear his approach.

"A Judge," she murmured to herself, "Libera curse it all!"

The Judge laughed and positioned his ax by her throat. Selle stood beside him, mouth agape, unsure of what to do. The Judge spoke.

"Listen up! I'm Rognen, and this lovely little lady is now my prisoner. If anyone decides that they want to be the big hero, I'll slice her open like a ripe tomato and do the same to you. Now, stay where you are!"

Selle looked over to Adolfo, who had finally dealt with the Cavalier. She mouthed "what do we do", hoping to get some sort of response. He mouthed something back she could barely make out, but she got an idea of what he wanted. She gripped her staff and firmly jabbed it into the hind foot of the large hound the man rode. The beast squealed in pain and jumped up, causing the man to lose his grip on Phoenix. She fell to the ground and landed on her rear.

The Judge wasn't about to take this insult lightly, and swung his ax down at Selle. However, Isambard was ready for action and quickly grabbed her and Phoenix, throwing them both on the back of his horse and began racing back towards the castle as Adolfo charged forward with his lance.

"Isambard! What are you doing?!" Phoenix shrieked, "Adolfo still needs us! He can't take that Judge on his own!"

"Lady Phoenix, I was ordered to get you back home safe. Your father knows you raced out here. He wants you home, now!" Isambard snapped the reins and continued towards the castle.

Phoenix snapped her head around to see where Adolfo was. She watched as he drove his lance into the side of the hound. She watched as the hound fell to the ground, dead. She also watched as the rider brought his ax down on Adolfo's unprotected head.

In that moment, everything froze. Phoenix couldn't do anything as she saw Adolfo slowly fall to the ground, dropping his lance. The man who killed him dropped his ax, and Phoenix could only stare helplessly as he ran to parts unknown.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she managed to call out. "Adolfo! ADOLFO!" Selle had to grab her as she reached out for her fallen mentor in tears, screaming his name.

Isambard found himself grateful once more that the market was only a block from the castle.

Upon arrival back at the castle, Selle quickly rushed Phoenix to her quarters. Isambard stood alone in the main hall with the guards. After several minutes of fidgeting with his armor and shuffling his feet, he heard a voice from behind him.

"Looks like trouble struck here too, huh? What happened to my sister?"

Isambard turned to face the tan skinned, floppy haired woman behind him. "Lady Alani, it's so good to see you ok. I mean, not as if I couldn't have saved you if you weren't of course!"

"Cut the act, Isambard, now isn't the time for your ridiculous bravado. I need to know what happened here. I- Drake! Where the hell have you been?" Alani snapped as the swordsman finally entered the hall alongside his dragon.

"Sorry, milady! Alexian and I were trying our best to help out some people we saw panicking out there. We tried to get some info on what happened but everyone's too shaken up to tell us much beyond there having been an attack in the market."

Wilderwind spoke up, "Alexian is over in the market now trying to piece things together. It looks like it really hit it today, huh? Just keep smiling everyone, we'll get this all sorted out!"

"Isambard," Alani continued, "I need to know everything that happened, and I need to know it now."

"You might want to sit down, Lady Alani, you aren't going to like this. To put things short,

I think we're about to have a war on our hands."


End file.
